Book banners have targeted Stephen King again.
“Different Seasons,” a collection of shorts by King that was published in 1982, has been pulled from school libraries in Utah, reports the Guardian. The collection is noted for containing two stories which have been adapted into the classic American films, “The Shawshank Redemption” and “Stand By Me.”
“Different Seasons” was pulled from Utah school libraries after four school districts voted to remove it earlier this month, triggering a statewide ban under Utah law. State code allows a book to be barred from all public schools if at least three districts—or at least two districts and five charter schools—find it contains “objective sensitive material,” including content deemed “pornographic” or “harmful to minors” under Utah law. The book was previously available for those in grades 7-9.
The collection joins dozens of other titles on the list of books removed from Utah schools. In response, the ACLU of Utah lawsuit filed a lawsuit in January on behalf of several authors’ estates, arguing the state’s book restrictions violate First and Fourteenth Amendment protections.
King is no stranger to book bans. An October 2025 PEN America report named the author “the most banned author in U.S. schools.” His books were censored 206 times during the 2024-2025 school year, according to PEN, with “Carrie” and “The Stand” among the 87 of his works affected.
King responded to the latest banning on X in his trademark, succinct fashion.
“They banned DIFFERENT SEASONS in Utah,” he wrote. “Contains STAND BY ME and THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, stories of friendship and courage. Readable by teens, too. What’s wrong with these people?”
They banned DIFFERENT SEASONS in Utah. Contains STAND BY ME and THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, stories of friendship and courage. Readable by teens, too. What’s wrong with these people?
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) July 14, 2026
Take action
Alarmed by the escalating attempts to censor books? Here are six steps you can take now to protect the freedom to read.
- Follow news and social media in your community and state to keep apprised of organizations working to censor library or school materials.
- Show up for library workers at school or library board meetings and speak as a library advocate and community stakeholder who supports a parent’s right to restrict reading materials for their own child but not for all
- Help provide a safety net for library professionals as they defend intellectual freedom in their communities by giving to the LeRoy C. Merritt Humanitarian Fund.
- Educate friends, neighbors, and family members about censorship and how it harms communities. Share information from Banned Books Week.
- Join the Unite Against Book Bans movement and visit our Fight Censorship page to learn what you can do to defend the freedom to read in your community
- Become an ALA Supporter and help us fight for libraries and everyone’s freedom to read.
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